


Play Me A Song

by Denois



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Avoiding Feelings, Getting Together, M/M, Multi, Music Kink, Pining, PolyFrogs, music in private places, music in public places, polyfrogs + charmer, recording people in public without their knowledge, relationship discussion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-29
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-07-04 08:57:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15837987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denois/pseuds/Denois
Summary: The fact was that Dex knew that music was Nursey’s love language.He spent two years convincing everyone that so much as hinted that he might play a musical instrument or sing that he was completely unable to carry a tune or keep a beat.His plan worked perfectly.





	Play Me A Song

**Author's Note:**

> Prompted by "music as love language"
> 
> Thank you to [B_Frizzy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/b_frizzy) and [Lukutoukka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lukutoukka) for beta reading.

The fact was that Dex knew that music was Nursey’s love language. 

Their first kegster as frogs, Holster had pulled out a karaoke machine and everyone was subjected to numerous drunk people singing when they probably couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket when they were sober. Dex had briefly considered taking a turn when a guy and girl got up and did a duet. 

To be frank, they nailed it. It was really good. So good that Nursey had pretty much tackled them and then dragged them out of the Haus while attached at the lips. 

Then there was the busker they saw on a roadie, shredding the violin. It brought tears to Dex’s eyes. And Nursey dropped a bill and his number into the case. Dex still wasn’t sure why he agreed to cover for Nursey when he snuck out of the hotel later to meet the guy. 

They’d go clubbing and Nursey would disappear into the back with singers, go home with sax players, practically jump pianists on the bench in front of everyone. 

So, yeah. Dex knew that music was Nursey’s love language. Or fuck language. Whatever, Nursey has a musical ability kink.

If he was fair, he was pretty sure that Nursey thought he was in love at the time. And it wasn’t like it happened all the time, maybe a handful a semester. Most of the guys on the team wheeled more often than that.

But Dex knew. He knew it by finals that first fall, when Nursey said “Would you ever sing to me?” 

The “No” rolled easily off his tongue. 

He ignored Nursey’s follow up of “You’d totally sing to me.”

Then he spent two years convincing everyone that so much as hinted that he might play a musical instrument or sing that he was completely unable to carry a tune or keep a beat. 

His plan worked perfectly. 

* * *

It all led to a quiet Tuesday afternoon in Junior year, sitting on the floor of his and Nursey’s room, listening to Chowder strum on an old guitar and sing quietly. 

“You’re really good, Chris. You should keep it up. Bet Farms loves it.” He flashed a soft smile towards Chowder and turned back to his reading. It was always easier to read with music and the easy comradery with Chowder made it even better. 

“Thanks Dex. I haven’t had much chance to play since coming out here. I left my guitar at home.” He flashy a bright, braces-less grin and resumed his song.

Then the Haus door opened and he heard feet thundering up the stairs. “Dex! Are you singing?” 

“Oh shit. Brace yourself, Chow.” Dex muttered while quickly putting his book away.

“Wha-?”

Chowder’s exclamation was interrupted by the door slamming open and Nursey’s eyes sweeping over Dex and then landing on Chowder. There was a brief pause, the calm before the storm, while Nursey’s face contorted as he processed the scene before him. A number of emotions passed before he settled on a new mix of love and desire. 

Dex had not accounted for Nursey’s attraction mixing with his affection for his best friend. He quickly grabbed the guitar and shoved it under the bed to protect it, just seconds before Nursey tackled Chowder. 

“Dex, I need the room for the next few hours.” 

Nursey’s voice was muffled and Chowder’s moans weren’t helping, but Dex heard it loud and clear anyway. He scrambled up and out of the room as quickly as he could and then stood staring at the closed door. 

“Really? It’s my room, too. Chowder’s is ten feet away.” But he knew it wouldn’t do any good. He was just venting his frustration. With a heavy sigh, he turned and headed down to the basement. He had a few hours to kill and listening to Chowder had given him a desire to play himself.

He’d spent two and a half years of only playing when it was completely safe, quietly in the basement when everyone thought he was working on the dryer, or the furnace, or the water heater. 

* * *

This time, he took his case and headed to the Student Center. He sat on the bench for the baby grand and played a few walking bass lines. He was almost tempted to come up with a blues song to go with it, but poetry didn’t come so easy to him. 

“That’s really cool.”

Dex looked up and saw there were a couple of people that had paused to watch. He forced a terse smile onto his face. “It’s better on an upright, but those aren’t quite as portable.” 

The girl in front tilted her head down and smiled. “I bet.” 

Dex nodded at her and put his head back down, focusing on his playing. When he looked up again a few minutes later, the girl was gone, along with the small crowd that had been there before. He put the guitar back in it’s case and turned to the piano. 

A quick glance at his watch said he still had plenty of time. After a little bit of warm up, he fell into Piano Sonata No. 14 in C♯ minor. Then he moved into a couple of other classical pieces. 

Eventually, he stopped and stared at the keys, letting his hands fall into his lap. He relaxed his shoulders, letting them fall, and took several deep breaths. Then he returned his hands to the keys. The notes drifted out and he wished he had a full band backing him, but he pushed that away, closed his eyes and opened his mouth.

Pretty woman, walkin' down the street  
Pretty woman the kind I like to meet  
Pretty woman I don't believe you, you're not the truth  
No one could look as good as you, mercy

 

He kept his voice from breaking through the whole song. But he might have said d-man a few times instead of woman. 

When he finished the song, he tilted his head to one side then the other, and flexed his fingers. He figured he might as well continue the catharsis. 

Oh, how you sparkle  
And oh, how you shine  
That flush on your cheeks is more than the wine  
And he must do something that I didn't do  
Whatever he's doing  
It looks good on you

 

You look so good in love  
You want him  
That's easy to see  
You look so good in love

He came in late on the next line.

I wish you still wanted me. 

It wasn’t exactly applicable, but Dex continued with the song. When he was done, he leaned back and ran a hand over his hair. He should probably head back, just in case Nursey was overly optimistic about the amount of time he was sexiled. He wanted to get the bass back in the basement. 

* * *

Once the bass was hidden again, he decided he really needed to stay out of the Haus the rest of the day. 

“Fuck. Founders should have another copy of that text, right? Right.” Dex wondered if he should stop talking to himself. He dismissed that thought and headed to the library. 

* * *

He woke up to his phone chiming multiple notifications. He sat up and stretched, trying to get the cricks out of his neck and back. Falling asleep on a library table was never a good idea. 

Once he felt mostly whole again, he actually looked at the notifications rolling across his phone screen. Mostly, they were from the group chat. He unlocked the phone and pulled up the new messages from Chowder.

Shark bait: Dex!  
Shark bait: You lied to me!  
Shark bait: OMG DEX!!!  
Shark bait: This is swawesome!

Dex blinked and closed the text window. Maybe someone else would make more sense. 

Nurse: Poindexter  
Nurse: What the fuck man.  
Nurse: How could you keep this from me?  
Nurse: I thought we were bros.

Still not helpful. He was pretty sure the group chat was just Nursey and Chowder exchanging deets, which he was not ready for, even after a short nap. 

So he opened the Facebook notification from Farmer to see that she’d tagged him in a video. 

A video of him at the Student Center. 

And ok. That answered the questions about the texts at least. 

Dex stood up and dropped the textbook he’d grabbed (and managed to read all of one paragraph in before falling asleep) on the reshelving cart. Just as he reached the doors to exit Founders, his phone chimed again. This time it was a text from Farmer.

Farms: Hey, just an FYI. C and I talked about both you and Nursey.  
Farms: So if you’re into C, don’t let Nursey have all the fun  
Farms: Or try to convince you that he’s the only one allowed to hit on C  
Dex: Not looking for hook ups with my friends.  
Farms: You’ve met C, right?  
Farms: He’s a relationship kind of guy.  
Farms: Just. Keep it in mind. If you’re into it.  
Dex: *thumbs up emoji*

When he got to the Haus, he put his head down and ignored all the chirps and comments his teammates flung his way as he headed straight through the house and upstairs to his room. Nursey was sitting at the desk, watching the video again, halfway zoned out and Dex ignored him as well. 

He didn’t even bother changing, just climbed up to his bunk and pulled the blanket over his head.

“Sexy Dexy. Why wouldn’t you tell me this? You know I love music.” Nursey’s voice was closer and Dex groaned in response.

“Dexy, stop ignoring me. Why did you refuse to sing for me?” The beds shook as Nursey started climbing the steps to the top bunk.

Dex flipped over and flung the blanket down. “Do not climb up here. The top bunk is not rated to hold our combined weight. You’ll kill us both.”

Nursey glanced down at the bed and back to Dex but he did stop climbing. “Dexter, why didn’t you tell me? You know music is my love language.”

Dex snorted. “Yeah, I know you have a musical aptitude kink. I’ve seen you wheel every musician and singer you’ve ever met.” 

“Are you slut shaming me?” Nursey sounded offended, but Dex had fixed his gaze on the ceiling and refused to move it.

“No. I don’t care how often you wheel. And it’s not even that often that it comes up.”

“Are you _kink_ shaming me?” Now Nursey sounded incredulous.

“Still no. Just because I don’t want you to try to wheel me because of your kink doesn’t mean I care about your kink.”

“Bro! I care about consent. I don’t wheel people that don’t want to be wheeled.”

Dex covered his face and fought the urge to scream.

“Just let it go, Nurse. I just didn’t want to be your kink. Let it go.”

“Ok, please don’t sing that.” Nursey reached out and jiggled Dex’s leg. “Come on. It’s not just about a kink, you know.”

“Yeah. I know. You love everyone that can sing or play. And that love lasts for about a day. Leave me alone, Nurse.” Dex tried to roll over again but Nursey tightened the hold on his leg. 

“Wait, wait, wait.” 

Dex glanced down and watched the way Nursey’s face scrunched in confusion. He sighed and closed his eyes again, pulling the pillow from under his head to cover it. 

“Dex. You didn’t want to be my kink because you thought I’d only want you for a day. Will. Come here. Come here.” Nursey started pulling on Dex’s leg, but Dex ignored him some more. 

“Will, come down here or I’ll climb up and the bed will break.”

“Go away, Nurse.”

“I can’t do that until you understand. Until you know.”

“I understand perfectly well. You and Chow and Farmer will all be quite happy. Let me sleep.”

Dex listened as Nursey climbed back down, thankfully returning to ground without injuring himself. His relief was short lived as Nursey exited the room and then returned moments later. 

“Tell him. Tell him C.”

“Uh. Tell him what?”

“What I’ve told you every day for the past year.”

“You mean that you love him? But you told me never to say anything to him.” Chowder’s voice was confused. “That’s why I never asked either of you out. What’s going on?”

Dex finally rolled over and looked over the safety rail, eyes shifting from one of his best friends to the other. “You have each other. You have Farms.”

“Ok, yeah. But, we kinda want you too if you’ll chill for two seconds and listen to us.” Nursey rolled his eyes as he spoke.

“Dex! I was serenading you. I only caught Nursey on accident.” Chowder’s eyes were wide as he stared up at Dex.

Dex rolled back onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He groaned as he pushed himself back towards the steps down to the ground. Why did he have to love these two nerds?

“Does this mean you’ll both sing for me?” Nursey’s voice was hopeful and Dex briefly considered climbing back up to his bunk.

**Author's Note:**

> HMU on tumblr at [SexyDexyNurse](https://sexydexynurse.tumblr.com/).
> 
> The was originally supposed to be a Nurse Shark to NurseyDex conversion, but instead it wanted to by PolyFrogs+Charmer, so here you go.
> 
> Now that they've started figuring out that they all like like each other, the face smooshing can commence.
> 
> Piano Sonata No. 14 in C♯ minor is aka Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven.
> 
> The other two songs are "Pretty Woman" recorded by Roy Orbinson and written by him and Bill Dees, and "You Look So Good In Love" recorded by George Strait and written by Glen Ballard, Rory Michael Bourke and Kerry Chater.


End file.
